Sister Track Presidents Say "Cookie Cutter" Label Doesn't Cut It

The president of Kansas Speedway said he's heard the “cookie cutter” pejorative used to describe his track from various people and groups occasionally, but very rarely from one key constituency.

“I don’t hear the drivers talking about cookie-cutter tracks. I hear the media talking about cookie-cutter tracks," said Pat Warren, president of Kansas Speedway. "And to me that sort of an interesting distinction because the drivers realize that every track they go to is a challenge, and they’ve got to figure it out, and if every mile and a half oval was a cookie cutter and exactly same, you’d see the same guys winning everywhere and you don’t.”

“Cookie cutter” is used to deride tracks (usually 1.5-mile ovals) that are seen as near exact copies of other tracks, or tracks that are vanilla or devoid of personality. Kansas Speedway and Chicagoland Speedway, due to their very similar layout, are periodically labeled "cookie-cutter tracks."

The president of Chicagoland Speedway, often called Kansas’s “sister track” due to their similarities, said the best antidote to the "cookie cutter" label is heavy doses of three-wide racing. 

“The way I respond to that is to say look at IndyCar,” said Craig Rust, president of Chicagoland Speedway. “Three of the five closes finishes in IndyCar history are at Chicagoland, and the closest one-two-three finish in series history was here. The quality of the racing here, you can’t argue it. It’s an exciting product. It’s great racing."

In fact, Chicagoland Speedway was the site of the closest race finish in history, according to Guinness World Records, when Logan Gomez edged Sam Schmidt Motorsports teammate Alex Lloyd by 1.65 inches or 0.0005 of a second in an Indy Lights race in 2007.

"I think we get that cookie cutter label because Kansas and Chicago were built about the same time and I think it’s something that gets thrown out there," Rust said. "I tell people (who use the term) to look at the quality of the racing, and then move on. We have exciting racing here and that’s what we try to show people.”

Warren said the label also denies the nuances of each track, and on high-speed ovals small bumps, seams and tiny grip differences can become major factors influencing set up and strategy.

“Football and basketball stadiums and arenas have the same size field or court, but they are very different to play in,” said Warren. “If you talk to a basketball player and say you are going to play in Allen Fieldhouse where the University of Kansas plays or you’re going to play in a high school gym, the players are going to tell you the difference. And they are all playing on a hard wood floor that is the same dimensions. I think there are aspects of competition that change even if the playing surface is literally identical, which isn’t even the case for us and other mile-and-a-half tracks.”

Warren said as tracks age they change as well, creating more uniqueness and distinction between even nearly identical layouts. As for Kansas, Warren said they like to walk the middle line between ideal for NASCAR and ideal for IndyCar.

“Our understanding and feedback from the drivers is that they love coming to the track because we are set up to be able to run both series, and in some ways that set up compromises to some degree the racing you have for both series,” Warren said. “Because if you are set up to run strictly stock cars, IndyCars aren’t going to run the way they want to, and if you are set up the other way just IndyCar, it creates challenges for the stock car racing and we’re sort of in the middle. We believe we provide great racing for both and I think that is reflected in what the drivers say about our track, especially as it’s aged.”

Drivers Talk about Kansas

Sarah Fisher: "I like Kansas, but I think it's the sleeper of hard mile-and-a-half ovals. It's not just an easy, stamped track. There are tendencies that it has and it really requires a lot of grip from the cars, so it's not just a plug-in place.

Scott Dixon: “We’re definitely looking forward to it. I think Kansas as a circuit for the Target cars has been fantastic. We've always had very good races there. As a track and finishing wise, I can't wait to get there. I think it's going to be a fantastic place for us, for Dario and myself. We have some new faces in the series this year, so it'll be a good place to work at, see who you can race with at this point and who you can't and who you want to give a bit more room coming into the month of May. It will be good to get a lot of people up to speed, but it's far different from Indy. But every race this year definitely counts.”

Dan Wheldon: “I’ve always enjoyed racing at Kansas and obviously it’s a track that very much suits my style. It’s always an intense race. And it seems each year the track tends to lose a little grip, so we really have to work hard on having a good handling racecar – especially across the seams that the track has. But it’s usually a race that’s very exciting for the fans and I know we’re looking forward to a good result there.”

Vitor Meira: “The key for Kansas, just like any other oval, is to stay with the lead group and wait for the last pit stop and then drop the hammer. To do that, we have to unload with a good setup and I think Jeff [Britton, chief engineer] is going to be a big part of that. The key is to maintain the lead group and show what you have for the last 50 laps.”

Justin Wilson: “I’m really looking forward to Kansas and it will be interesting feeling the DRR car out for the first time on an oval. Dreyer & Reinbold Racing has a lot of history on the ovals and I know there’s a lot that I can keep learning from that. Who knows where we’re going to end up?”

Ryan Hunter-Reay: “I don't think I really see anything as being unique with Kansas. I do see that we have a good amount of mile-and-a-half ovals that we need to get that package sports. So this is the first test of that, and we need to go out and have a good race weekend.

"So there's a lot importance riding on this weekend for us as a team, and on my program. Obviously IZOD has been great as a sponsor of the No. 37, the Andretti Autosport car. We're heading into the month of May very uncertain about where it leads us. Indy could very well be our last race. It's just a big question right now.”

Marco Andretti: "Kansas is a good circuit to get us back on ovals and ready for Indy. We were able to finish sixth there last year and had a decent season overall on ovals so I'm optimistic we can build on that for a strong finish this weekend. We just need the Venom car to have the speed necessary turn the season around and start our climb in points. I'd really like to head into May comfortably inside the top 10."

Tony Kanaan: "I'm ready to go. It's time to do some oval racing and I'm looking forward to it. As a team, we have shown a good improvement in our road- and street-course program and hopefully that will carry over to the ovals, starting this weekend at Kansas for Team 7-Eleven."

Danica Patrick: "I'm ready to race on an oval, for sure. Kansas is a place that I feel very comfortable, and I think it's coming at a very good time for me and the GoDaddy team. The series has been so competitive this year and I know that won't be any different this weekend. But, I do think that Kansas will provide me with a good opportunity to get back up front."

Comments

[The Speedgeek]

I'm not the world's biggest fan of having multiple tracks on the calendar that appear to be roughly the same from a Google Maps viewpoint, but you really can't argue with the on-track product (as Rust points out). Also "not the world's biggest fan" certainly doesn't mean that I won't be waking up at 6:00 AM or earlier on Saturday to get my fat tail on down there. A "semi-OK" IndyCar race (which is kind of a worst case scenario at a 1.5 mile track) beats just about any other kind of racing any day.

[Dylan]

The "cookie cutter" issue isn't really an issue for Indycar. For NASCAR it is, because the run a lot more of them, and they run 2 dates at most of those tracks, and the on track product isn't very good. In Indycar, though, there's usually plenty of passing and they only run 5/17 races at them anyways.

[Jim Bob]

After 4 100 MPH parades, give me this "cookie cutter" any day of the week.

[JP]

I think the discussion is very similar to the day when people compained about the dual use football/baseball facilities built in the '60's like Three Rivers, River Front and the original Busch stadium and derided them in comparison to the Wrigleys and Fenways of the world. I think part of my frustration with the mile and halfs is that with baseball, you could alway make a trip to see one of the historical gems in action. For Indycar racing, IMS is all we have left. I know I long for the ability to go see an IndyCar race the speeds at michigan, the driver skills to win phoenix, see an Andretti race at nazareth or get a brat at milwaukee. Until the day we are invited back to the places where our heritage was built, I will complain about the sterile options that I have. But overtime that may soften as well, I can't imagine an August that didn't involve a trip to kentucky with the Mrs and her father. And to second the SPEEDGEEK despite my complaining an IndyCar race at these places will beat anything else.